Vegan Fruit Cake
Course: Sweet Treats Servings: 12
Prep time: 30 min Cook time: 2 1/2 hours
Difficulty level: Easy
VEGAN
Author: Jennifer Sargison
This fruit cake is the perfect vegan cake to enjoy when you fancy a sweet treat. It’s rich, indulgent and boozy, everything you expect a fruit cake to be…it’s also 100% VEGAN This cake can be made and eaten straight away or you can also make it up to 6 weeks in advance if you’d like to infuse it over a few weeks with brandy for a nice boozy, taste, this is a great idea if you’re making this cake for Christmas/party celebrations (For a deeper boozy taste the fruit can be soaked in brandy/rum for up to six months in advance). You can either enjoy it as a plain, but delicious fruit cake or top it with a layer of marzipan and royal icing for a traditional or festive fruit cake.
You’ll need to prepare the fruit before hand so have a quick read through the recipe before you start.
First get started on the dried fruits and nuts as they need to be soaked before you use them.
400 g Dried fruit (A mixture of raisins, currants and sultanas)
100 g Dried cranberries
100 g Candied peel
100 g Glazed cherries (cut in half)
50 g Chopped almonds
Pop everything into a bowl and cover with either a cup of brandy (for a boozy taste) or a cup of water for a non alcohol version. This is for the dried fruit to plump up and soften. You should leave them to soak for a minimum over night but up to one week, which is better for the brandy version as it gives the fruit time to infuse. A week of soaking works really well. Last year when I made my annual Christmas cake I soaked the fruit for a good couple of months before hand but I didn’t find it made much of a difference so I think a week tops will do the same job.
You’ll also Need:
180g Vegan Spread (margarine)
125g Dark brown sugar
50g Light brown sugar
50g Treacle
(Dry Ingredients)
350g Plain flour
40g Ground almonds
1 Teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
1 Teaspoon of cinnamon
1 Teaspoon of nutmeg
(Wet Ingredients)
120ml Plant-based milk
2 Tablespoons of red wine/apple cider vinegar (trust me on this one, you can’t taste it and it all helps with the rising of the cake)
Method:
Pre-heat the oven to a low 140C. Grease and line a large deep cake tin (20cm) with baking paper.
Whisk together the spread, both sugars and treacle until fluffy.
Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl. Add the milk and gently fold until combined making sure you don’t over mix as this will cause the cake to flatten as it bakes.
Add the bowl of fruit, nuts and whichever liquid you have soaked them in to the cake mixture and gently fold to combine once again.
Bake for around 2 1/2 hours or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the cake.
Once the cake is fully baked, turn out onto a cake rack and allow to cool completely.
Brush with brandy if you’re using alcohol or mix a little water and sugar to coat and brush over the cake to seal in the moisture.
If you wish to infuse the cake with brandy over the next few week then simply skewer some small holes into the cake and pour a spoonful of brandy over the cake every day or so.
Top Tips
Top Tip Number One:
If the edges start to look a little brown before the middle is cooked simply cover the top of the cake with a layer of baking paper to ensure the edges don’t burn.
Top Tip Number Two:
Make sure you leave the cake to dry out without adding any brandy for 2 days before you add the marzipan and icing if you are going to decorate the cake.
Top Tip Number Three
This cake can be a little crumbly so make sure you cut it with a sharp knife and clean the knife each time before cutting another slice so each slice is nice and compact.
Top Tip Number Four
This cake can be enjoyed as a simple fruit cake or you can add a thin layer of marzipan followed by a thin layer of Royal icing. I used shop bought and simply rolled out a layer big enough to cover the cake, using a clean tea towel to smooth the top and edges.
Top Tip Number Five
This cake should be double wrapped in tin foil and popped into an air tight container and will stay fresh for around 6 week (possibly longer if it lasts this long!)
A simple decoration for a Christmas cake
If you do make this then I hope you love it
Any thoughts or comments?
Please leave your message below and I’ll get back to you
Big love, Jen x